St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-01-20
SOLDIERS aam oeposED.
Members OF the legislature Speak
Their Opposition and Tell the
Reasons WHY.


More opposition than was anticipated
was exhibited against Capt Shuler's sol
ders' home bill at the conference held at
the capitol last evening between eX-sOldier
members of the legislature and the commit
tee representing the G. A. Il. Past Com
mander Drake, of Winthrop post. and
Capt. Henry A. Castle represented the
committee Senator Pope called the meet
ing to order, Senator Thacker presided and
NJ. NJ. Clark, of Mortified, acted as secre-
tary With forcible speech urging
united support of the bill, Col. Drake read
Capt. Shuer's house bill, similar one to
that of Senator Pope. He referred partic-
ularly to its clause for temporary relief
81, 500 to be appropriated for INDECENT sol
dierS for the current year and $40, 900
annually thereafter. He had consulted
State Auditor Braden, and had been i'll
formed that the finances of the state were
in. such bad condition that it would be
necessary to get the bill and its appropria-
ton through early. Senators Brown. of
Pipestone, and HiXsOn, of Grant, and Rep
resentatives Flynn, of Little Falls, and
Powers, of MorriStown, opposed the bill;
that is. they opposed its proposed appropri-
alton of 500, 600 for the home.
ClCapt. Castle called the attention of The
gentlemen to the record of the legislature
in the past. when it passed the Winona
soldiers orphan home measure. Col.
Hicks, of Minneapolis chairman of the
committee, said he had drafted the bill and
embraced in it the best features of the
Winona home bill and the Michigan and
Illinois laws The speaker explained that
the fundamental principle of the organiza
ton of the G.. A. r. which he
joined at Quincy, ILL.,, i'll 1866 was to pro-
vide for the INDECENT old soldiers. He
called particular attention to the temporary
relief clause of the bill in question Rep
resentative Robert Newell, of st. Paul.
urged the measure. The reason advanced
in opposition by MessrS. Flynn, Brown,
Powers and Hixson. who all wanted the
matter postponed, was that it asked for too
much of an appropriation. Mr. Flynn is a
member of the finance committee of the
house, and has es mated that bills asking
for appropriations aggregating halt mil
lion dollars are already introduced. He
said the state was
PRACTICALLY BANKRUPT
to-day, and warrants upon its treasury
were being discounted by the banks. A
special tax would be needed.
Senator HiXon said the farmers of the
state were too poor to pay such an appr0-
pration, they have given mortgages upon
their farms and upon the crops for years
ahead. He had found the inmates of the
DAYTON, o., soldiers home dissatisfied.
From Minneapolis man he had learned
that the bill was a scheme involving a quar-
ter of million dollars, and the upShot of
it would be that the benefits would be di-
yided between st. Paul and Minneapolis.
Col Drake became highly indignant. and
.'repelled the inSinuatiOn'' upon the G. A.
r. committee. Senator Brown believed
such bill proposes to degrade the OLD
soldier to pauperiSm.
Representative Powers was of the opinion
that the national government should apprO-
pirate $500, 900 for the home and take the
burden off the state. He proposed an
amendment making the temporary relief
appropriation for this year $50, 600, and
dispensing with the soldiers home provis-
ions.
Col Drake informed the meeting that
there were 30, 600 old soldiers in Minnesota;
also that 8, 900 applications had been made
for admission to the national soldiers home
and rejected. There were fifty-two old
soldiers maintained in the poorhouses of
Minnesota. He believed that in a year
there would be hundred inmates in the
Minnesota soldiers home.
Senator Pope was ayerse to having the
G. A. r. receive all the credit of the bill
the veterans rights union had first Sug-
gested the plan. He had found G. A. r.
posts opposed to it. Personally he had
once been in favor of temporary relief,
now ne was in favor of home also.
After an extended discussion, i'll which
every conceivable point was brought out,
the matter was laid over.